My favorite breakfast place in Paris is on the rue Mouffetard down near the market. The Cafe Mouffetard makes their own brioche, croissants and pain complèt. All are fabulous, but the brioche is like eating silk. The best I have ever had. and the café au lait is so delicious. I am tasting it as I am writing this.

Really any cafe with a nice location, a good table with a nice view should be fine. Order a croissant and coffee, maybe and orange juice and start the French way - Les Deux Magots is a perfectly fine recomendation (although expensive).

I am certain a lot of hotels do buffet breakfasts but why have an "international breakfast" when you could enjoy a great Parisian experience? (Redslot - also not certain why a visitor would head for an American restaurant in Paris - Breakfast in America).

PhilD - Why have an "international breakfast" or go to an American restaurant in Paris, you ask? The short answer: Eggs. The long answer: Eggs, fruit, yogurt, cheese, cereal, baked goods other than baguettes/brioches/croissants, and so on. Some of us - francophiles even! - like a big honkin' breakfast. And that's not exactly a French forte.

I suppose it does depend on your philosophy. When I travel I enjoy the opportunity to tune into the local culture by adapting to the local cuisine and eating style.

In France a light/quick breakfast, followed by a more substantial lunch in a cafe, and then dinner in a restaurant. In the UK, a good fry up for breakfast, a sandwich in a pub (or takeaway) then a full dinner. In Spain breakfast of churros and hot chocolate, a tapas bar for lunch and a long late dinner etc etc.

Obviously there is nothing wrong with searching out and enjoying the same breakfast/food that you enjoy at home. But I wonder if you miss an important dimension of travel by doing so?

I fondly remember a recent trip to Venice when we stood to have breakfast in the espresso bar by the Rialto Bridge and soaked up the atmosphere as local workers hopped off the water bus, dashed into the bar and downed an espresso before heading to work. A slice of Italian culture that we would have missed if we hadn't followed local breakfast customs.